Body Music I/ Body Music II

Charlemagne Palestine

1973-74, 20:30 min, b&w, sound

Produced at Art/Tapes/22 in Florence, Italy, these works are seminal performance-based exercises. Body Music I is "a study in the vocal-physical responses of a species caught in an enclosed square room." In Body Music II Palestine creates a frenetic visual translation of physical movement and energy.

Ritual in the Emptiness

Charlemagne Palestine

2001, 12:04 min, color, sound

Ritual in the Emptiness continues Palestine's long-term exploration of subjective point of view. In an abandoned French factory filled with wintry light, Palestine records his vision on video; the viewer sees what the artist sees. As he spirals from room to room, Palestine's voice resonates throughout the cavernous space, filling the emptiness with sound and motion. The video ends as it begins, with a fleeting glimpse of a solitary individual.

Running Outburst

Charlemagne Palestine

1975, 5:56 min, b&w, sound

In his performances, Palestine often uses teddy bears and toy pandas as what he terms "symbols of identification, like another reality of myself." In Running Outburst, these symbolic objects, placed at specific points in his loft, serve as surrogates for Palestine, who remains invisible behind...

You Should Never Forget the Jungle

Charlemagne Palestine

1975, 11:09 min, color, sound

This work was produced at the Oppenheim Studio in Cologne, Germany, and incorporates emblematic objects that are Palestine's performance signatures: scarves, cognac, knives and teddy bears. In You Should Never Forget the Jungle, Palestine is seen in an enclosed room, wearing a scarf and holding a...